Free Concerts Keep Skateboarding And Rock Connected

"The genesis of the Skate & Rock Free Concert Series was to bring live music into our skate park," says Barry Blumenthal, a skater who helped put together the upcoming concert series and also assisted in raising funds to build the Lee and Joe Jamail Skatepark just west of downtown.

"Skateboarding and rock and roll have always been connected at the hip," Our goal is to keep it that way."

A live-music festival in Houston's 30,000 square-foot, downtown skate park seems like a no-brainer, but Blumenthal is the first to make it happen. Rocks Off assumed that he was using the recent successes of Free Press Summer Fest as something of an inspiration, Blumenthal insists that the Skate & Rock Series is a different beast.

"There probably are some common skaters and concert-goers at Summer Fest, however the similarities between the two events are very few," he said. "Skate & Rock is free, and there is no profit motive."

Blumenthal will be satisfied if the event goes well, but he isn't looking for any sort of monetary gain.

"My hope is (that) the skate park will become a place where you want to be, as a skater or a music fan. Moreover, I want the park to become a place where musicians and skaters meet and decide to start bands."

All three bands involved in the show are skaters, or at least have members who are skaters. Most of them met Blumenthal at the park, voiced their eagerness to perform and were put on the bill.

"I was skateboarding at the park, and (Blumenthal) was there. I overheard him talking to someone about the skate park series, so I went up and started talking to him," says Elijah Allen-Ross Kelley, the founder, manager and guitarist for Disfrutalo!

"I had a flyer for one of our shows... he called me back later and was like, 'I checked out the music... it's some pretty trippy stuff.'"